The creation of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982 and the Confederation deal of 1867 stand out as key contributors to nation-building for Canadians, according to a new national survey.

But among the more surprising findings in the recent poll commissioned by the Montreal-based Association for Canadian Studies is the fact that younger citizens — those aged 18 to 24 — believe the country’s iconic coffee-and-doughnut shop Tim Hortons has a much more powerful role in shaping Canadian nationhood than the monarchy.

The web-based poll of 1,200 Canadians, conducted in July and August by Leger Marketing, tapped respondents from across the country for their opinions on the nation-building significance of a wide range of historical events, institutions and policies.

Those surveyed were asked to indicate whether each of the listed options was “very important” in terms of building national consciousness, “somewhat important” or not very important at all.

While the major constitutional milestones of 1982 and 1867 topped the overall list — with the adoption of the Charter and the Confederation pact deemed “very important” by 68 and 50 per cent of respondents respectively — the Canadian passport (47 per cent) also garnered a strong expression of significance across all age groups.

Between one-quarter and one-third of Canadians said such things as multiculturalism, the War of 1812 and the CBC were also very important components of nation-building.

Lower on the significance scale for all Canadians was the monarchy (16 per cent), Tim Hortons (13 per cent) and Canadian Tire (nine per cent).

But a closer look at the numbers reveals interesting differences of opinion based on age and mother tongue.

For example, nearly twice as many young people considered Tim Hortons “very significant” to Canadian nationhood (23 per cent) compared with the country’s connection to the monarchy (13 per cent).

In fact, Queen Elizabeth and Co. ranked behind Air Canada (19 per cent) but above Canadian Tire (seven per cent) near the bottom of the “very significant” list for those aged 18 to 24.

“There is very little knowledge about the history of the monarchy in Canada” among young people, said Association for Canadian Studies executive vice-president Jack Jedwab. “In some parts of the country, like Quebec, it elicits a negative feeling, while elsewhere the feeling is neutral at best.”

Only three per cent of French-speaking respondents considered the monarchy a “very important” factor in nation-building.

Jedwab added that, “for young people, Tim Hortons is something they will associate with as Canadian,” and that the restaurant’s relatively strong ranking among youth is also “a testimony to the successful branding of the company.”

Similarly, the federal Conservative government’s recent branding of the War of 1812 as a major moment in the national story — a controversial initiative linked to the ongoing 200th anniversary of the conflict through 2014 — seems to have had an impact on Canadians’ sense of its significance in building of national consciousness.

The 1812-14 war was described as “very important” by more than 30 per cent of Canadians in every age bracket — despite the fact that only nine per cent of all French-speaking respondents shared that view.

“I do think it is a function of the (federal commemoration) campaign, given the relatively poor knowledge of the event as displayed by Canadians in previous polls,” said Jedwab.

The strong showing for the 1867 union of Canada’s founding provinces — Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia — bodes well, noted Jedwab, for the major commemorations planned to mark the 150th anniversary of Confederation in 2017.

“It is a good sign going forward for commemorative purposes,” Jedwab said, that 1867 is still seen as “foundational” by most Canadians. But he called it “fascinating” that such a strong majority of younger Canadians consider the 1982 adoption of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms very important (71 per cent) while barely half (54 per cent) said the same about Confederation.

Meanwhile, the 18-to-24 group is much more likely to see multiculturalism as very important (49 per cent) compared with those aged 25-44 (34 per cent), 44-64 (25 per cent) or 65 and over (21 per cent).

“The 18-24 cohort sees multiculturalism (as being) nearly as foundational as Confederation,” said Jedwab, adding that the result is “something that the government may want to consider as we head to 2017. It may need to find a way to connect the dots in the Canadian narrative as we define 150 years of the country’s evolution.”

The survey results are deemed to have a margin of error of 2.5 per cent, 19 times out of 20.